How to watch: Event will be live webcast on redbull.tv and streamed in bars and restaurants around the harbor. The public will not be allowed on Maverick’s Beach or the bluffs overlooking the break

Details: titansofmavericks.com

The Titans of Mavericks organizers’ planning to hold the big wave surf contest this season received a push forward Thursday when the California Coastal Commission approved Cartel Management’s coastal development permit during the commission’s November hearing in Half Moon Bay.

Cartel, which acquired the contest last year, also got a bit of push-back, however. In an unexpected action, the CCC also voted to require the contest more actively include female surfers as a condition for receiving the commission’s blessing in the future.

Half Moon Bay resident Sabrina Brennan, who holds the elected position of San Mateo County Harbor District commissioner but appeared at the hearing as a member of the public, raised the issue during the public comment portion of the meeting. During her three minutes on the floor, Brennan requested the CCC require the contest include a women’s heat because, she said, it was unreasonable to expect women to compete directly against the men for one of the 24 slots that are chosen by a group of veteran Mavericks surfers dubbed “the Committee 5.” She also pointed out that the five-year permit recently issued by the SMCHD commission to Cartel precludes any other big wave surf contests from being held during that span, meaning there could not be a separate women’s contest at Maverick’s.

Coastal Commissioner Mark Vargas motioned to amend the CDP to ask the Cartel to provide a plan for encouraging equal opportunity for women surfers in future events. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Martha McClure and after some discussion the motion was narrowly passed by a vote of 6-5.

“I was surprised by the motion and its passing. I thought it might go up in flames,” Brennan said.

The amendment to include women will have no bearing on this year’s event. The CCC approved the 2015-16 CDP upon conditions that parking and traffic plans and environmental impact reports would be submitted.

The contest window officially opened on Nov. 1 and extends to March 31.

Cartel Chief Operating Officer Brian Waters said the condition will not change the way the event is run next year since said women are already considered as contest entrants.

“It is an equal opportunity contest, and if women meet the criteria that the Committee 5 sets forth, they can make the selection,” he said. “We’re not excluding women, if anything we’re encouraging them.”

The Committee 5 includes Maverick’s pioneer Jeff Clark and three-time contest champion Darryl “Flea” Virostko of Santa Cruz, as well as Ion Banner of Half Moon Bay and Shawn Rhodes and Matt Ambrose of Pacifica. They select competitors based on their perceived dedication to surfing Mavericks, their athletic condition and, as Clark states in his profile on the Titans website, “the potential to give us a show.”

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In 13 years of Maverick’s contests, no female has been selected to compete. Santa Cruz’s Sarah Gerhardt, the first woman to surf Maverick’s, was included on the Titans’ initial list of 58 potential invitees last year, as was Scotts Valley charger Savannah Shaughnessy. Shaughnessy reached the round of 38, but was not included among the 24 invitees nor five alternates.

“I think they really do want to include women in contest,” Shaughnessy told the Sentinel at that time. “Even if it’s a women’s heat, women have to be able to surf it and have that skill. I think they want to include women in the future, but they have to be at that level and surf alongside the men, which is pretty difficult because there are so many good men.”

Waters said holding a women’s heat in conjunction with the Titans contest is unlikely because of time constraints. Santa Cruz professional surfer and Titans invitee Tyler Fox noted that planning is never easy when dealing with Mother Nature.

“I would love to see the women have the chance to compete against each other. That would be awesome for them,” he said, “but I realize that it’s a logistical matter of fitting all the heats into one day.”

This was the first year Maverick’s contest organizers have been required to apply for a CDP. In addition to granting access to the surf break near Pillar Point Harbor, it allows Cartel to close a portion of the West Trail leading to Maverick’s beach and the nearby parking lot. It also requires traffic and parking controls around the one-day event.

Restriction of public access to the beach and the environmentally sensitive bluffs overlooking the surf break became a requirement of the SMCHD after about a dozen fans were injured when a rogue wave swept over the beach in 2010.

About the Author

Haven Livingston, an avid whitewater kayaker and surfer, writes a monthly column on water sports for the Sentinel. Send feedback and stories ideas to her at: sports@santacruzsentinel.com. Reach the author at sports@santacruzsentinel.com
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